Counting Up
by bluinary
Summary: "Lifetime" and "forever" are synonymous, Hiyori learns. And she couldn't have hoped for anyone better to share hers with.


**15**

It's late. Hiyori lies on her back, staring at the ceiling from her bed. Yukine is working at Daikoku and Kofuku's place. Despite her protests, Yato lies right by her side, his body turned toward her, speaking rhythmically and enthusiastically, propping himself up with his elbow.

Hiyori's entire being is humming pleasantly, fidgeting nervously. He smells sweet. He's very close. She doesn't know whether she wants to tell him to go away or lean a little closer.

But he says something-

"-it's probably because you're here that I-"

and she blurts,

"Can we stay like this?"

Their eyes lock, their faces flushing in synchronization.

"What…do you mean?" he asks, hoping his guess is right. They're frozen.

She looks away again. She can't face him, not when she says it.

"I- I've said before that I want to be with you forever. I do. And I think it's because you're so important to me. And that's because I-"

She makes the mistake of looking at him, and he's beautiful and charming and she can't say it.

"You're….important to me, too," he chokes.

There's a brief moment, where they both hesitate, asking themselves, _Can I say it?_

Hiyori's brave. She knows she has to say it some time or another, and now feels right. Now is what she has.

So she sits up, Yato following suit, looks him in the eyes, and confesses.

"You're important to me because I"- she swallows- "I...have feelings for you. I want to be _with _you."

For a split second, she's terrified. He's a _god. _He's an idiot, too; how can she be sure he even understands what she means?

Worst of all, _she's _just a girl, and part Phantom at that. Hiyori's never been special. Why would he bother to reciprocate her ridiculous, childish, unbearably deep and suffocatingly real feelings?

She doesn't worry long.

Hiyori's eyes look up only when he's less than an inch away, and by then, he's got her head cupped in his hand, his eyes are sealed shut, and his lips are crushed against hers.

Yato's fingers are threaded in her hair; he slips them around strands and holds her to him fiercely. Hiyori simply follows his lead with her lips, stroking the back of his neck and the longer ends of his hair. She loves how they can close gaps between them now, how they move closer and closer until they're meshed into one being.

He kisses the corner of her mouth, then her temple, then her ear, and, finally, he rests his head over her shoulder. He's breathless.

Hiyori stiffens in surprise as she feels tears on her back.

"Y-Yato?"

"You mean so much to me," he whispers. "I'm….I'm so happy."

Yato lets himself lean into her. She doesn't completely understand his tiny sobs and hiccups, but she lets them come, anyway.

To her, he was first love. She'd never fallen for someone before. She'd never been fallen for.

To him, she wasn't first love. Just the first.

Yato had fallen in and out of love several times, but never with someone so _good_, so good for him. No one had loved him as purely and surely as Hiyori. No one else could replace her.

* * *

**18**

"Last box," calls Yukine. With arms heavy as lead, he places it next to Hiyori's desk, flopping down into the chair behind it.

"Great!" Hiyori pipes in a lilting voice. Despite having carried most of her possessions to her new dorm, she's considerably energetic. It doesn't take much to figure that that has something to do with her new living space.

"This place is kinda small," he says. "When do you want to start unpacking?"

She shrugs, taking a seat on her bed. "We can start tomorrow. I know both you and a _certain someone _must be exhausted by now."

"Not tired," Yato mumbles.

"You are," his younger companions reply flatly.

"Am not."

"If you weren't tired, could I do…._this_?"

Hiyori takes a jab at his stomach. Yato hacks weakly in pain, not even bothering to assume a defensive posture.

"Probably," he replies. "But if I really was tired I bet I couldn't get you to lie by my side."

"You can't," she tells him with a smirk.

"Can I?"

"You c-" Hiyori never knew how _strong _he could be. Her head still hasn't stopped spinning by the time he has her trapped in his arms.

As Yato chuckles and Hiyori attempts to free herself, Yukine makes a face of disgust.

"Just get a room already," he mutters.

"Great idea," Yato tells him. "You can excuse yourself, in that case."

"Yato!" Hiyori snaps, her face turning red.

"Ew," says Yukine. Only Yato catches the smile he fights as he dutifully leaves the room.

"Did he know you were joking?" Hiyori tries not to giggle.

"Joking?" Yato repeats, rolling them over so he pins her down. His eyes adopt a rather feline look to them. Hiyori's pulse beats rapidly.

"...Yato?"

He snickers and rolls over to her side once more.

"Yeah, I was joking. I had you for a second, didn't I?"

Her breathing is still irregular. "Um- yes. You did."

He quits grinning, looking at her with slight concern. "Are you okay?" he asks. "I didn't scare you, did I?"

She shakes her head. "No," she mutters. "I just thought…...well- I don't know."

"Did you…._want…_….?"

"Kind of. I mean- I want to try it. Sometime. Soon."

"..."

"..."

"Did you know that I love you?"

"I think so, yes. Did you know that I love you?"

"Yeah."

"Did you know that we're going to last forever?"

"I had a gut feeling, yeah. Did you know that you're painfully beautiful?"

"..."

"..."

"I love you."

"I think I love you more."

"I want you."

"I know I want you more."

"Please kiss me."

"Now?"

"When you think it's right."

"We've got forever."

"I want you now."

"But the time's not right."

"But we've got forever."

"But the time's not right."

* * *

It's so hard to remember, sometimes, what _forever_ means.

* * *

"Yato? Where are we?"

"You can open your eyes."

"How did y-"

"Good ol' Tenjin pitched in, no strings attached, once he heard it was for you. We owe the sucker a favor."

"But why?"

"I think….the time is right."

"..."

"..."

"You mean-"

…

"_Oh._"

"Is the time right?"

"...Definitely."

"We're trying this."

"We are."

"I love you so much."

"I l-"

It continually shocks Hiyori, how incredible a kisser Yato can be.

"I know."

* * *

**24**

Hiyori comes out of the bathroom, takes a seat on her couch, and pulls out her phone.

_Hiyori: Hey!_

_Yato: Hey! :D_

_Hiyori: Come over ASAP. Don't bring Yukine._

_Yato: ?_

_Hiyori: Hurry, please! cya_

_Yato: kk_

She grabs the nearest trash can and stations it next to her. She doesn't know whether to be happy or worried, excited or stressed. This changes everything, undoubtedly. She kind of wants to vomit, just a little.

Yato appears just a minute later at her side, looking very confused.

Hiyori is so caught up in her thoughts that she jumps when he calls her name.

"Oh! Sorry, I was thinking," she explains. Her brooding expression shifts into a smile as she faces her body toward him.

"Thinking about…."

"Us," she says. He lifts an eyebrow. She continues, "We're a great team, aren't we? I like to think we could do anything together."

"Yeah, I guess," he agrees. "What brought this on?"

The sparkle in her eyes leaves him breathless for a moment.

"Love, I'm pregnant."

There's a pause. After a few long, still seconds of his mind processing the information given, Yato explodes like a party in a box, scooping Hiyori up and dancing her around the room with an improvised song.

"We're having a kid~ We're having a kid~"

Hiyori forces him to stop, running to the trash can to vomit with a brilliant smile.

"Sekki!" he calls. Two swords appear in his hands. "Yukine," he says, and Yukine appears, scowling.

"I was eating lunch," he states flatly. "Somebody better be d- Hiyori?"

"I'm fine," she says through chokes.

"Yukine, guess what?" Yato asks excitedly.

"I can go back to my lunch?" Yukine guesses hopefully.

"We're having a kid!" he corrects.

Yukine, reasonably, faints.

* * *

**32**

Yuzuki and Sachi haven't seen their grandparents. As a matter of fact, neither Mr. nor Mrs. Iki have any idea that they have grandkids in the first place.

However, they still have a family.

Mama is a teacher at the school they go to. She's very pretty, and very sweet and funny.

Daddy mostly stays at home and take care of them, but sometimes, he gets calls for his business. He never tells them what he's doing.

Yuki-nii works with Daddy as his assistant. Besides Mama, he's the only person that keeps everyone out of trouble.

Aunt Kofuku and Uncle Daikoku like to come over to babysit. They're lots of fun, especially Aunt Kofuku, who Daddy jokes with a lot. Uncle Daikoku is the best babysitter ever, because he looks scary and can beat up bad guys, but he can also make them treats and read them bedtime stories when Mama and Daddy and Yuki-nii can't do it.

Uncle Tenjin and his friends come by to visit sometimes. Besides Mama's and Daddy's and Yuki-nii's jobs, he gives the family the money they need. He's also very smart. His friends are all super-pretty. For some reason, they always make fun of Daddy.

Finally, there's Miss Bishamon and Mister Kazuma and their friends. They all really like Yuzuki and Sachi. They really like Mama, too, but they hate Daddy. Especially Miss Bishamon.

Yuzuki and Sachi live in the country, far away from cities, where Daddy can take them hiking on Sundays and give piggyback rides. He says their eyes are brighter than the sky, and he calls Yuzuki "12 P.M." and Sachi "12 A.M.", because Yuzuki's eyes are violet like the sunset, and her hair is dark as midnight, and Sachi has brown hair and blue eyes, like the morning. Yuki-nii says it's confusing. Mama says she thinks it's cute.

They have a great big dog named Kiseki, and he loves everyone and everything. Everyone and everything loves him, too. Yuki-nii especially loves him.

At school, they're liked by a lot of people. But they're also hard to remember, for some reason. Their friends and teachers are always forgetting their names, what they look like, sometimes. They cried the first time it happened. Now they're used to it.

Mama tells Yuzuki and Sachi that, one day, they'll meet her Mama and Daddy, but she says it'll be a while.

When they ask if they'll ever see Daddy's Mama and Daddy, she tells them he doesn't have any, and they cry, not knowing a lie when they hear it. Daddy tells them bedtime stories- about happily ever afters- and they calm down.

* * *

**40**

After twenty-five years, Hiyori's parents finally meet the love of her life.

She has a hard time explaining things- why he looks so much younger, who the blond young man is, how gods and Phantoms and Regalia exist and work.

And, even after the miracle of their belief and forgiveness, she's still terrified.

They could forget.

She stresses over this the whole time, the whole meeting, until Iki Yuzuki and Iki Sachi walk in.

One's fifteen; the other's twelve.

"Nice to meet you, Grandma and Grandpa," they say nervously.

Tears come to their grandparent's eyes.

"Are these…"

"You didn't tell us."

Hiyori isn't sure why, but tears come to her eyes, as well. She's so relieved.

After introducing themselves, her parents turn back to Yato. Her father shakes his hand firmly, thanking him for taking care of her this whole time, and for bringing them grandchildren.

Her mother hugs him tightly.

"It's nice to meet you, son," she exhales.

Yato tears up at the last word and hugs her back.

As the entire affair turns into a place for waterworks and mushy hugs, relief washes over Hiyori.

She knows they won't forget. They can't. Not after this.

And sometimes, they struggle to recall their son-in-law's face, or how his name sounds, or what sets him apart from normal people, but they never forget him.

Hiyori's beginning to feel the slow, syrupy movement and pleasure of forever.

* * *

**57**

She had to lie today.

When she and Yato were walking down the street, someone told them they made a cute scene.

"Is he your son?" they asked.

Hiyori stiffens at the memory.

"Yes," she lied. Yato squeezed her hand.

Some days, to make her feel better, he tries to look her age, because reminding her of how old he really is doesn't seem to help anymore. He applies make-up and the like to look older. It makes her laugh. But that's it.

Neither Yuzuki nor her younger sister can let people meet their father anymore. They would be confused.

Yukine himself faces a similar problem. He'll always be an older brother to the girls, but when they go out in public, they have to hold his hand and call him by his first name alone. He never meets their friends anymore, simply because they all think he's an adult by now. It's somewhere between ridiculous and awkward for him, shameful and embarrassing for them.

The girls know everything now: why they can never meet Yato's father, why they're so easy to forget, where their dad goes when he disappears, what he fights and what their mother became so long ago.

A lot of time has passed.

Even though Hiyori looks young for her age, someone still asked if Yato was her son.

They may have to move, soon.

* * *

**68**

She can't kiss him anymore.

He claims he doesn't care, but it bothers her. She'll accept a peck on the cheek, or an embrace, but she can't kiss him. As a matter of fact, she's been considering sleeping in a different bed. He looks so hurt when she suggests it.

Yuzuki and Sachi introduce their father as their brother, now. They call him Nii-san and, when they're alone, they apologize deeply. At this point, Yato hardly ever goes out, unless he gets a call.

He's been sinking into this great, big depression, wondering why humans were so stupid, to let things like age keep them from things like love. All he has is Yukine, and the other gods and Regalia, in the end. That's what he's been thinking lately.

When he wakes up from a nap, he finds that the house is disturbingly quiet. Cautiously, he creeps out of his and Hiyori's bedroom to check for trouble.

And

"SURPRISE!"

There's cake and ice cream and friends and family and smiles and laughter.

They've decided it's his birthday today, like they do every year on any random day. He's two-thousand, seven hundred and sixty three years old, approximately. He gets presents, lots of them, good ones. His daughters kiss him on the cheek, and he even wins a hug from Yukine.

But the real gift reveals itself when, after everyone leaves, Hiyori lets him kiss her.

"We're going to last forever," he tells her again.

His heart sinks when she replies with an unsure, swift nod.

* * *

**76**

They've quit sleeping in the same bed.

She's gotten surgery, for her leg.

Her hair has no trace of black, all silver.

He's eternally the same.

The ocean of forever had seemed so vast and inexhaustible at first. Now it's a mere pond, shallow and lonely.

Time is running out.

* * *

**82**

The ocean has dried up.

Forever is over.

* * *

Yato has had his heart broken many times, and he will continue to feel it shatter, over and over again.

But this is not one of those times.

This is not heartbreak. This, he imagines, is death. Depression. Pure misery. A maelstrom of pointlessness and fire in his throat and lead in his chest. A bleeding gash, infected and fresh, refusing to heal, the pain becoming so commonplace that it's hardly noticed. The stopping of time itself. This is life without her.

He wonders what it must be like for humans, to know that you'll be gone, too, soon enough. He thinks it must be a heavenly thing to know.

But he stays. For Yuzuki and Sachi, he stays. For Yukine, he stays.

He wishes he didn't have to.

* * *

He was first love, only love. Hiyori spent her life with a man that gladly played the part of her other half. She died happily, with two wonderful daughters, various loving friends, and a partner who would have sacrificed anything for her sake.

She was first everything. First follower, first human, first real friend, first soulmate.

Eternity stretches on, and time heals all wounds, but this one simply refuses to close. It will ebb and stretch and contract randomly, but never finally heal.

Eternity stretches on. That much, Yato knew.

But he'd never have guessed that forever could stop.

* * *

**A/N: Set in an AU where they wouldn't even consider Hiyori becoming a Regalia. Sorry if there are any typos I've missed.**

_**I do not own Noragami or its characters.**_

**Thanks for reading! Please review.**


End file.
